Thanks very much, Paul. Good morning, everyone. I'd repeat the welcome that Paul gave you.
We're delighted to have you with us today as we worship and as we learn.
We're continuing our series looking at Luke's Gospel, Luke's Gospel which was written to
give an accurate account of the life of the Lord Jesus.
We're coming today to a slight change in Luke's Gospel, slight but distinct, I think.
For the last eight chapters or so, if we've gone through Luke, we've had material that
is almost all unique to Luke. It was only in Luke's Gospel.
For the next few chapters, we're rejoining Matthew and Mark who have similar content to Luke
and we'll have things in all three Gospels. Now what does that mean in practice?
What it means in practice is when you read Luke, Luke loves telling stories or recounting the stories of Jesus.
So for the last month or two, a lot of what we've been looking at on Sunday mornings
has been stories that Jesus told. Wonderful stories they are too.
The Good Samaritan, the Lost Sheep, the Prodigal Son, the Rich Man and Lazarus and so on.
Many, many stories.
For the next section in Luke's Gospel, tracking Matthew and Mark,
it will be much more encounters of Jesus with people.
So it's not telling stories about people as much of what the last few chapters has been about.
It is what Jesus said to people and how we help them.
So we're talking today about real children and a real young man.
It's not just stories that Jesus told. Wonderful though they are.
So we're reading in Luke chapter 18 and we're going to start reading at verse 15.
Luke chapter 18 and reading from verse 15.
And it says,
A certain ruler asked him,
Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?
Why do you call me good? Jesus answered.
No one is good except God alone.
You know the commandments.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not murder. You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony.
Honor your father and mother.
All these I have kept since I was a boy, he said.
When Jesus heard this, he said to him,
You still lack one thing.
Sell everything you have and give to the poor.
And you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.
When he heard this, he became very sad because he was very wealthy.
Jesus looked at him and said,
How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle
than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.
Those who are at this asked,
Who then can be saved?
Jesus replied,
What is impossible with man is possible with God.
Peter said to him,
We have left all we had to follow you.
Truly I tell you, Jesus said to them,
No one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children
for the sake of the kingdom of God
will fail to receive many times as much in this age
and in the age to come, eternal life.
I'm sure God will help us as we seek to understand
what he's saying to us this morning.
Sometimes it's helpful to look at things from a different angle,
to get a different perspective,
which might give us fresh insights.
I like this map.
It's an upside down map of the world.
It's also kind of rotated a bit around 180 degrees east to west.
When you look at a map like this,
you notice things that you might miss on a normal map of the world.
Isn't Russia enormous?
It's the yellow bit down near the bottom.
It's Canada huge, the pink bit on the bottom left.
And doesn't the United Kingdom look totally insignificant
when it's two-thirds of the way down the right-hand side
rather than in the centre near the top?
You look at it differently and you get a different view,
you get a different perspective on life.
I think here in this passage we're looking at,
Jesus is turning things upside down
to give his disciples and others a different view of life.
He's saying, you have views that are in line with the things of this world.
You think that rich people are important.
You think that children are relatively insignificant.
Well, I'm turning it on his head.
And in God's world, which he calls the kingdom of God,
in God's world, things are different.
And the people who God values are those who depend on him
and who aren't relying on themselves for their future.
And so we have these two incidents with the Lord Jesus.
And I think if we can just summarise what we're going to say this morning,
that these incidents teach us that the importance,
the importance that Jesus attaches to simple faith
and to sacrificial followers.
Simple faith and sacrificial followers.
Let's go through them and see if you feel that's a reasonable summary
of what the Lord Jesus is teaching.
So to begin with, we have some people who are bringing babies
or young children to Jesus for him to lay their hands,
him to lay his hands on them.
I don't think there's healing involved here.
Sometimes Jesus touched people to heal them.
They were being brought so that Jesus could bless them.
And as a symbol of the blessing that he was giving to them,
he was putting his hand probably on their head.
Quite a common thing to do in that day,
which still perhaps happens to some extent today.
And the disciples are really quite upset and annoyed at this.
They're saying, well, don't let these children distract Jesus.
Jesus is on a really important mission.
He's giving some really vital teaching that we need to learn
and others need to hear.
And here these people are.
They're bringing these kids along and they're distracting Jesus' attention
and they really shouldn't be doing that.
Jesus says, no, these children are important.
These children are so important that the kingdom of God,
God's world belongs to people like these.
Now, in Jesus' day, children would have an even lower status
than they do today.
If you were a child, you'd be treated almost as a possession of your parents.
You would expect to be seen and not heard,
to listen and learn, to be respectful,
and would have been treated as someone who was relatively insignificant.
When you got to about 12 or 13,
you became an adult in that culture
and you took on an extra significance.
But children, as such, weren't valued
and were seen as being relatively unimportant.
And Jesus says, no, children matter.
Children have a real value and we should recognize that value and treasure them.
So a very important lesson for the disciples here,
that they would be looking at saying,
Jesus should be spending his time on adults and people who can listen and understand
and have dialogue with them.
And Jesus says, no, the time I spend with children is really important and really valuable
because the kingdom of God belongs to people such as those.
Very obvious and simple lesson for us.
We have lots of children around our church.
More coming and plenty here already.
Do we really value and treasure them?
Or do we see them as a bit of a nuisance,
as those who run around that we don't really have very much to do with?
Time spent with children is time well invested.
And as a church, we should be treasuring, valuing,
and nurturing the children who are among us.
Supporting Peter and the team in the work they do,
and if we can't do it actively in our prayers,
and taking a real interest in the children when we come across them in the church.
Jesus treasures children, and we should as well.
That's not the main lesson that Jesus is bringing us here.
Because he says, truly, I say,
anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.
So it's not the value of a child that he's particularly highlighting here,
although he does that.
He's saying the children perhaps have value and certainly should be looked at and respected
because of the simple faith, because of the trust that they have.
Now, children, we know, can be really naughty.
They can do things that we don't want.
They can be selfish.
They can be quite unkind to one another, and so on.
So Jesus isn't saying here,
children are wonderful, and there's never anything wrong with them.
He's not suggesting they're in any way innocent, if you like.
But he is saying, I think, that children have that simple trust that we need to look at
and we need to take for ourselves.
You see, if in a child with his parents,
in pictures, they have a child holding someone's hand.
And if you see a parent and child walking along the street,
you can see the trust that the child has in the parent and their dependence on them.
Children don't think they can do everything for themselves.
They don't think they can be self-sufficient and they don't need anyone else.
They know that they need others and they know that they need to put their trust in them.
And so Jesus says, for us to enter the kingdom of God,
we need to become like children in knowing that we need something that we can't provide for ourselves,
and then in trusting God, trusting the Lord Jesus to give that to us.
And that's something that is basically described in this passage as receiving the kingdom,
as being saved, as having eternal life.
They really all in this context mean much the same thing.
That we need God, we need the Lord Jesus,
because we can't by ourselves get to heaven.
We can't by ourselves do enough good things to help me all the bad things we've done.
We need to recognize that only through the death of the Lord Jesus on the cross,
which we'll be remembering later on,
only through that and by simple trust in him,
can we be forgiven?
Can we have eternal life?
Can we be part of the kingdom of God?
And if we ever begin to think we can do it by our own efforts,
we've totally missed the point of the teaching of the Lord Jesus,
of the whole of the Bible,
of the truth that God says to us,
which is that we are helpless sinners.
We've done wrong.
We can't put ourselves right before God.
But God has provided a way,
and we need to accept that way.
You don't need a theological degree to be a Christian.
Theological degrees are great.
Don't think I put him down in any kind of way.
Theological degrees are great,
but to become a Christian,
to be saved,
to have eternal life,
all you need to understand
is that you're a sinner before God,
that you deserve to be punished,
that Jesus took that punishment,
and by trusting in him,
you can be saved,
you can have eternal life.
We need to have the trust of a child.
We need to have a simple faith.
And as we come on to the second story,
it's precisely what this young man,
this ruler, lacked.
He lacked a simple faith
because he thought that he could do things
that would put him right with God.
So we have this man.
He's described in Luke
as being a certain ruler.
He's described later on as being very rich.
Matthew tells us he was young.
He was someone who had some status in society.
We don't know precisely
what kind of ruler he was.
I think it's probably more likely
he was a civil ruler
rather than a religious one.
They would probably have said
if he was a ruler of the synagogue
or something like that.
So he probably was a senior official
or perhaps even a member
of the royal household.
We don't know,
but he was someone
who was in that country important.
He was also someone who was rich.
He had, for whatever reason,
acquired lots of money.
And on top of that,
he wasn't just important and rich.
He also appears to have been
a morally upright and good person.
So he wasn't some kind of
crap civil servant
or dodgy politician.
He was someone who had lived a life
trying to please God
and trying to do his best,
but still he's not sure
that he's got eternal life.
He looks at everything he's done
and he says,
maybe there's something missing.
Maybe there's some big gesture
I could make.
Jesus, what do I have to do
that I'm not already doing
to receive eternal life?
Now, I suspect a lot of the people
when that man came to Jesus
thought, well,
why does he have to do anything more?
He's rich.
In that society,
being rich was seen as being
very much a sign of God's favor
that you'd done something
to deserve it.
He was moral.
He could go through it
the Lord questioned him.
He could go through
the five commandments
that the Lord brings out
and he could say,
yes, I've kept all of them
since I was young.
And people would be looking at him
and thinking,
here is exactly the kind of person
the kingdom of God belongs to.
Exactly the kind of person
who should earn God's favor
because he's good
and God has blessed him.
But Jesus looks on his heart
and he sees something different.
So he begins by slightly
rebuking him and saying,
well, why do you call me good?
No one's good except God.
Now, perhaps in saying that,
the Lord Jesus was trying
to draw it of this man
whether he believed
that Jesus really was God.
Might have been what the Lord
was trying to do.
The Lord then says,
well, how do you read
the commandments?
What are the important commandments?
And he says,
the Lord Jesus said,
here are five.
You shall not commit a doubt.
You shall not murder.
You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony.
Honor your father and mother.
Now, as you know,
there are 10 commandments
and lists in Exodus 20.
The Lord Jesus has chosen five.
He's chosen the five
that particularly relate
to our relationships with others.
Not the ones especially
relate to our relationship
with God
or in our thoughts,
the one about coveting
at the end,
but our relationship
with other people.
Which I guess is one
that people could look at
and they could say,
well, we've seen evidence
that this man is good.
He doesn't do these things
we're told not to.
And so the man says,
well, I've kept all these.
I'm fine.
Since I was a boy,
since I was a young man,
I have been keeping
all these commands.
Jesus then says,
good, well done,
but what you need to do now
is to give up all your money
and give it to the poor.
He says,
beyond the kind of religious keeping
of God's ordinances
and trying to keep on the right track
by yourself,
you need to really demonstrate
that God means more to you
than anything else.
And in particular,
since you're a rich person,
does God mean more to you
than your money?
And when it came to the bit,
the young man had to think
and say,
no, God doesn't mean more to me
than my money.
I'm willing to do big gestures.
I'm willing to try
and live a good life,
but I'm not willing to give up
my lifestyle
and the money that I have.
Ultimately for him,
treasure on earth
was more important
than treasure in heaven.
It was more important to him
that he should continue
to be able to live
a good lifestyle in this world
than that he should
have the assurance
of eternal life.
Now, Lord Jesus isn't saying to him,
do all this
and that will earn you
eternal life.
That is not the point
of what he's saying,
but he is challenging him
and saying,
what is more important to you,
is this world more important
or is God
and serving him
more important?
Challenge for us there,
I think,
as well this morning.
What really matters
to me?
If push comes to shove,
what are the important things
in my life?
Is it maintaining
my lifestyle?
Is it keeping
a reasonable standard
of living
and being able
to live in the style
that I've maybe become
accustomed to?
Is it my friends
or my family?
Is that what is most
important to me?
Is it progression
in my job
or whatever else
I'm doing?
Is that the thing
that really drives me
and is most important
in my life?
Or actually,
am I willing
to give up
all these things
so that I can serve God
and I can do
what he calls me
to do?
The requirement
of sacrifice
comes to this rich man
and he can't meet it.
He says,
no, that's a step
too far.
I'm not able
to make that sacrifice.
I want to hang on
to what I've got.
And the challenge
of requirement
of sacrifice
comes to us
this morning
as well.
So the man
goes away sad
and the Lord Jesus
uses what he said
as being an example
and a lesson
for others.
And he talks
about the rarity
of sacrifice,
how difficult
it is
to make
that kind
of sacrifice.
He uses a very
striking illustration.
A camel
would have been
the biggest creature
that people
would have been
familiar with
in Israel
in Jesus' day.
It was the biggest
animal
they would see around.
The eye of the needle
was probably
the smallest hole
that they could
easily think about.
So Jesus said,
take the biggest
animal you can
think of,
a camel,
think of the smallest
hole you can
think of,
the eye of a needle.
Can the camel
get through
the eye of the needle?
No.
It is that difficult,
said Jesus,
for a rich person
to enter
the kingdom
of God.
Now this really
throws the disciples
because they look
at this rich man
and they think
he's the kind
of person
who should be
getting into
the kingdom
of God.
He's wealthy,
he's had God's
blessing,
he's a good man,
surely he can get in
and if he can't,
who can?
So they're not
sitting thinking
as we might
sometimes,
well it's difficult
for the rich
to get to heaven
but the poor
perhaps is a bit
easier.
No,
they're thinking
it is impossible
if this is the case
for anyone
to get
into heaven.
And Jesus says,
you're right.
You're right
if you think
in human terms
but you're not
right if you think
in God's terms.
What man
can't do
what is impossible
with men
is possible
with God.
And we come back
again to where
we were with the
children
of recognizing
there are some
things that we
can't do
and in particular
we can't save
ourselves,
we can't win
God's favor
by trying to
outweigh our bad
things with our
good things
that just won't
work.
God demands
a perfect
standard
but if we
simply trust
in God
then he is
able to
bring us
that forgiveness
he is able
to give us
eternal life.
And Jesus
is saying
again here
you can't
do it
by yourself.
However rich
or however poor
you may be
however good
you may think
you are
you can't
do it by
yourself.
It's impossible
with men
but it's
possible
with God
and if you
simply trust
in God
then you
have eternal
life.
Doesn't take away
the requirement
for sacrifice
having accepted
the Lord Jesus
having put our
trust in him
he calls us
to follow him
and to make
sacrifices
but the first
step is that
simple step
of faith
of trusting
in the Lord
Jesus.
us.
And then finally
he talks about
the rewards
of sacrifice.
I can almost
sense
sort of
almost desperation
in Peter's
words in verse
28.
He says
we've left
all we had
to follow you.
And I wonder
if he's thinking
well we've done
all this
we've sacrificed
so much
is that going
to make any
difference
or are you
going to say
that we're
like the rich
ruler as well?
And Jesus
says
no it's
different.
If you truly
make sacrifices
for me
having first
trusted in me
if you truly
make sacrifices
for me
then there
are rewards.
And anyone
who's left
home or wife
or brothers
or sisters
or parents
or children
will receive
much more
many times
as much
in this world
and in these
to come
eternal life.
I suspect
most of us
aren't called
to leave home
wife
brothers
or sisters
or parents
or children
for the sake
of the kingdom.
But some people
aren't
some people
have been
in the past.
My grandparents
were missionaries
in India
for many years
and being
missionaries
in those days
meant that
to get anywhere
you had a journey
was probably
several weeks
up to a month
on a boat
to India
and back again.
So they'd
left behind
parents
and if their
parents fell ill
or needed
urgent attention
they couldn't
get to them
quickly.
When they came
back on furlough
and their
eldest three
sons
they left
behind
to be educated
and they
wouldn't see
them for
several years.
I don't think
we should look
at that as being
in some way
heartless
or uncaring.
I'm sure
there were
many nights
of tears
and of heartache
for those
who'd been
left behind.
But it was
a sacrifice
worth making.
They felt
that the
words of
Jesus
needed to
be taken
seriously
and they
needed to
be willing
to leave
everything
for him.
Now Jesus
in a literal
sense we're
not going
to be called
to make
that kind
of sacrifice
today.
Even if you
go and work
in a far
away country
you can get
back to the
UK very
quickly if
you need
to.
But I think
we need to
challenge ourselves
what kind
of sacrifices
should I
be making
for Jesus.
What is he
calling me
to do
that will
demonstrate
that he
is more
important to
me than
any of the
things of
this world.
And Jesus
says if you
do that
if you're
willing to
count the
cost and
to make
the sacrifices
then you
will be
rewarded.
Not entirely
clear what
Jesus means
when he says
they will
receive many
times as much
in this age
and to some
extent it
will be the
fellowship of
other Christians
and the
support that
we can give
to one
another.
To some
extent it
will be the
peace and
joy of
knowing that
we are
serving Christ
and that
we are
doing what
pleases him
and our
eternal future
is secure.
But he
says he
won't be
in debt to
us he will
give us
what we
need in
this world
and then we
will go
and be with
him in
eternal life
afterwards.
Jesus calls
us to
make
sacrifices
and I
think we
need each
to challenge
ourselves if
we know
him, if
we are
trusting in
him.
What kind
of sacrifice
should I
be making?
And as we
sit in front
of a table
with bread
and with
the cups
on it
we can
think something
of the
sacrifice the
Lord Jesus
made for
us and
how he
left behind
all the
riches,
how he
in a very
real sense
gave up all
the riches
that he had
and took a
life of
poverty,
how he
humbled
himself and
died on
the cross
for us
and took
our sins
on himself
there.
As we
look at
his sacrifice
then that
should be
the prompt
for us
to think
what can
I give
to him
and what
can I
sacrifice
for the
Lord's
sake?
What is
it that
he's calling
me to
do?
He doesn't
call everyone
to give
up your
money.
That's
quite clear.
There are
lots of
rich people
in the
Bible who
are not
called to
give up
their money.
But what
is it
that Jesus
is calling
me to
do?
So a bit
of an
upside down
world isn't
it?
An upside
down world
where children
suddenly have a
huge importance
before Jesus
and a rich
ruler, a
respectable
person goes
away sad
because he
can't do
what's needed
to get
acceptance
into God's
kingdom.
Lest this
morning all of
us think
about do I
have that
simple faith
that Jesus
requires,
the faith
of a
child simply
trusting?
And if I
do, am I
willing to
be a
sacrificial
follower and
to go
wherever Jesus
tells me to
go and to
do whatever
he calls me
to do?
Pray that God
will help us
to understand
his word and
to be
obedient to
it.
Let's pray
together.
As we
pray, let's
just quietly
reflect on
what we've
been thinking
about,
reflect on
whether we
have that
simple trust
in the
Lord Jesus
that brings
eternal life
and whether
we are
willing to
make the
sacrifices
that he
might call
us to.
Lord Jesus,
we thank you
for the
sacrifice that
you made
for us.
We thank
you that you
gave up
everything to
come and
live in
this world,
to live a
simple life
in humble,
poor
circumstances
and even
to give
that up
and to
die our
death on
the cross.
We pray that
you will help
all of us
to come to
that point
of faith,
of recognising
there's nothing
that we can
do to save
ourselves.
We simply
need to
trust in
you and
then to
be willing
to give
everything to
you,
to be your
followers,
to be
sacrificial
in the way
we live.
We thank
you for
your presence.
We commit
ourselves to
you now as
we move
into this
time of
communion
and as
we particularly
remember your
death for us.
We give you our
thanks Lord
Jesus in
your name.
Amen.